Robinson Cano officially bid farewell to his pinstripes and donned a Mariners jersey on Thursday. The former Yankees second baseman was all smiles when he was introduced at a press conference in Seattle in which he focused mostly on moving forward with his new team (and sported a new beard).

With agent Jay Z looking on, Cano said he decided on Seattle because the Mariners "showed me love. They showed me they wanted me from Day One." It was an obvious swipe at the Yankees, whose seven-year, $170 million offer paled in comparison to the 10-year, $240 million deal Cano signed.

The Yankees?

“I didn’t feel respect," Cano said via the Seattle Times. "I didn’t get respect from them, and I didn’t see any effort."

"I feel like I belong here, the way I've been treated by ownership and the fans," Cano added. "Besides the Dominican, this is going to be my second home."

Wearing his new (Yankees-forbidden) muttonchops, he touched touch on the his former team a few times and said he was surprised to leave New York, where he spent nine seasons. Here are the highlights from a relatively brief news conference:

• On feeling pressure with such a huge contract: Honestly, no. Like I said, I feel like family here. I don't feel like, "We paid you, you have to do everything next year." I feel like with all this young talent, bringing all this experience I learned throughout my career, winning a championship in a playoff situation, winning the [World Baseball Classic], my goal besides winning is to bring those good experiences, good moments, all those things I learned to the process with veteran players, future Hall of Famers, to the young kids.

• Discussing whether he thought Seattle would make a bid: I didn't think about anybody. At first I went on vacation, all I wanted was to refresh my mind from the season. I'd never been in a situation like that where everyone got hurt and then [I'd] go on the field with a different lineup every day. [Seattle] showed me love and they wanted me from Day One.

• Was he surprised to leave the Yankees? Honestly, yeah. Of course. I'm not going to lie. That's the team you spend nine years [with and] won a title. Now is the time you have to turn the page. I'm happy to be here and excited. I can't wait for next season and can't wait to see the crowd in the stands so we can start winning games.

• On whether he'd reach out to Alex Rodriguez to talk about the pressures of a big contract: Honestly, no. Sometimes you want to experience it yourself. Maybe when I see him in person, if there's something I want to know, I will ask him. The good thing is I have a good relationship with the veteran guys in New York like Alex, Derek Jeter and Mariano [Rivera]. They said, "You know what? the door's going to be open for you whenever you need advice, you can call me." But right now, I don't think about the money.